Man is a Wolf to Man
by erika red
Summary: This is a postep for Homo Homini Lupus. I think every fic I write concludes with BA ship, so let's just assume there will be some. Ch. 3 up.
1. Chapter 1

_This is a post-ep for _Homo Homini Lupus. _It's perhaps the most disturbing episode of L&O:CI to date, and it ran in the first season. Eames shoots and kills a suspect, and a girl is repeatedly raped after she and her family are kidnapped. All in all, it's got a LOT of stuff going on, and none of it is nice. It's an excellent episode, and I can only hope this fic does it justice. As usual, please R&R._

* * *

"Hey," Deakins tapped on their desks. "Go home. The paper isn't going anywhere." He referred to the piles of paperwork that always threatened to overwhelm them. "You two did good today. Get some rest. I don't want to see either of you until Monday." He looked at Eames.

Alex stood and pulled her jacket from the back of her chair. Goren rose and held her coat for her.

"I'm glad I didn't have plans tonight." He muttered.

She let a short laugh shake her small frame, and leaned against the back wall of the elevator. The doors slid shut.

"Does it get easier?" Her eyes were closed.

"I hope not. The cases, yeah, but.."

"I know."

"Hey." He watched her until she opened her eyes. "We got through it."

"And you didn't kill him." A tiny smile shadowed her lips.

"You noticed that?"

"I noticed you kept buttoning your jacket."

"Better than clenching my fists."

"Carver should give you a medal."

"Yeah, the day hell freezes over."

"'This Award is presented to Detective Goren in recognition of Excellence at Not Killing Criminals who should be Bludgeoned, Burned, Drawn, Quartered, and then Stomped On.'"

Goren smiled. The doors slid open, and they walked out of One Police Plaza and into the cool darkness.

* * *

_Short, I know. Want more? R&R. _  



	2. Chapter 2

Bobby Goren chose to walk. The evening was cool, but not as cold as it had been. His breath steamed the air, and he left his coat unbuttoned. In parts of Manhattan, it doesn't matter who you are, you'll still feel small. Goren liked this, as it didn't make him feel small so much as anonymous. A girl laughed as she talked loudly on her cell phone. She clacked up the steps from the subway and hailed a cab. She wore her hair loose, and had on a tight short skirt. Her shoes had impossibly thin high heels. 

"Hey man, you got a cigarette?" A black man in a knit hat nudged his arm, and held out his hands.

"What brand you smoke?" Goren looked down at the man.

"Newports."

"Hold on." He turned, walked over to a newsstand, and pulled out his wallet. "Pack of Newports, hundreds and a lighter."

He tapped the pack, and pulled a cigarette out, lighting it with the lighter. He handed the rest of the pack and lighter to the man.

"Keep it."

"Wh.. hey, thank you, man! God Bless you!" The man shouted after him as he kept walking.

_"She'll trust you, more, you're a woman."_

_"She might trust me, she might even confide in me," Eames had sighed, and glanced at him. "But she needs to talk to a real man. Not a rapist, and not a weak failure, like her father, who was incapable of protecting her. She needs to talk to you. She needs you to be her ally and defender, and then she won't just confide, she'll fight."_

He flicked the ash, and sighed.

* * *

Alex Eames sat at her desk, a shot glass in front of her. Her chin trembled slightly, but no tears fell, and no sobs shook her body. She swallowed, and looked at the clear liquid in front of her. She took a deep breath, and down went the shot. The glass hit the surface of her desk again, and left a thin ring of liquid beneath it. She was blasting _White Room _by Cream, amongst various other songs on her mix. Her cat purred, and stretched, poking his claws into her thigh as he rubbed his head against her elbow.

"As long as you're here, I guess I'm not drinking alone," She lifted the cat into her lap, and he began to purr loudly, nuzzling into her shoulder.

It was then that the tears came, quick and silent.

* * *

He wasn't too surprised when he found he'd walked to her building. He'd finished his cigarette a few blocks ago, and shrugged to himself as he walked inside. When she opened her door, she saw him standing there, looking for all the world like a lost child, despite his stature.

"Hey." The wicked taste of liquor lingered in her mouth, though the tears had vanished.

"Hey yourself." He stepped towards her slowly.

"You smell like cigarettes."

"You smell like booze."

"Touché." She turned and let him follow her in, shutting the door behind him.

* * *

_Please R&R!_  



	3. Chapter 3

"I killed a man today." Alex lay on the couch, her shot raised. 

"You saved lives today." Bobby fingered his own shot from the recliner.

"We both did." She downed the shot and grimaced slightly. "I just wish we could stop it before it happened."

"So do I."

"We wouldn't have jobs, but.. I'd rather not have this job and than have this job and have this shit every day."

He studied her, quietly.

"It's like, the world we see every day missed all of the nice things in life. All of the potential happiness. We get the dark side, day in and day out."

"That's why we have to make our own happiness."

"How?" She looked up at him, her eyes shining.

He paused, downing his own shot and taking her glass. He set both on the coffee table and reached for the bottle.

"We hold on." He looked at her and then poured. "We hold on to the good things, and we don't let go." He handed her a glass, taking the other for himself. She stood up and took it, holding it up.

"To the good things." She said.

"To the good things," He clinked his glass to hers gently, and they drank.

She let him take the glass from her and set both on the table. He looked down at her for a moment.

"Earlier, you said ... you said I was a 'real man,'"

"Well, you are." She broke his gaze, and focused on his tie. "You're not a coward. You're honest, and loyal and strong."

"Oh." For once, he couldn't think of anything else to say.

His warm hands held her shoulders, and pulled her closer to him. Her small hands slid up his chest to his collar, pulling his tie until he leaned down. Her arms slid around his shoulders, and he pulled her up against him into a tight hug. They stood like that for a few moments, her head resting on his shoulder.

"Don't let go," He whispered.


End file.
